In wall blocking system

ABSTRACT

A wall blocking system is disclosed where a first bracket is attached to a board member and a second bracket is attached to the board member. The assembled system is suitable for attachment to structural members and provides a span of reinforcement between structural members and preferably behind a finished wall surface.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims benefit to provisional application 60/684,869, filed on May 26, 2005, entitled “In Wall Blocking System”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a backing device and method for attaching objects to a wall.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Numerous methods have been devised for home construction and home improvement including the addition of wall hanging cabinets or other objects. Usually, the attachment of an object to a wall is performed after the walls have been covered with dry wall. In this scenario, attachment of objects to a wall begins with finding a stud within the wall. Although various tools and methods have been devised to make the process of finding a stud easier, it would be preferable to avoid the need to find a stud altogether. What is needed is a system for reinforcing a span of a wall that is intended to receive a hanging object.

Methods of providing elongated attachment points on a surface of a wall are known. U.S. Pat. No. 5,222,611 discloses hanging an external mounting rail which can receive a hanging object such as a cabinet.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,591,995 discloses a method of hanging objects on a mounted peg board with hooks configured to interlock with the peg board.

What is needed is a system for reinforcing conventional building material such as drywall that can be mounted behind the building material so it does not affect the appearance of the finished surface. It is a further object of the invention to provide a rapid and efficient means of reinforcing a span of wall surface during construction.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an aspect of the present invention to provide an in wall blocking system to facilitate attachment of objects to a building wall surface. It is a further aspect of the invention to provide a reinforced blocking between two structural supports. The blocking is attached to a pair of structural supports with the use of metal brackets to produce a smooth profile for subsequent addition of a wall surface.

These together with other aspects and advantages which will be subsequently apparent, reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention, will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the preferred embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a rear view of the bracket of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a rear view of two bracket members and a board member.

FIG. 3 is a front view of two bracket members and a board member.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the system of the invention secured to structural members.

FIG. 5 is a rear view of the system of the invention secured to structural members.

FIG. 6 is a dimensioned view of two bracket members and a board member.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to the presently preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

The present invention relates to an in-wall blocking system for use in the construction of buildings. The invention provides a reinforcement between structural members such as studs and behind wall surface material, for example drywall. Where many solutions have been presented to attach objects to drywall after it has been hung, the present invention provides a reinforcement behind drywall or other wall materials so that an object to be attached to a wall can be attached horizontally independent of the location of a stud.

FIG. 1 presents a bracket member 10 with top tab 12 and bottom tab 14. The top tab 12 and bottom tab 14 are spaced apart to accept a board member (not shown). In a preferred embodiment, the top tab 12 and bottom tab 14 are spaced apart to accept a 1×6 piece of plywood with a nominal width of 5¼″. Top tab 12 and bottom tab 14 extend away from the plane of the bracket member 10 and in a preferred embodiment extend about three quarters of an inch to receive a 1×6 piece of plywood. It is contemplated that the bracket member can be formed in the configuration as shown in FIG. 1 with a variety of dimensions to accommodate various sizes of building materials. Bracket 10 may be formed of 20 gauge metal or 25 gauge metal, or any substantially equivalent thickness. Securing holes 16 are openings formed in bracket member 10. A plurality of securing holes 16 provide for attachment of bracket member 10 to a structural member (not shown). Attachment holes 18 provide for attachment of bracket member 10 to a board member (not shown). The top and bottom of bracket member 10 have a width 15.

FIG. 2 presents a view of the device of the invention attached to a board member. Bracket member 10 is attached to board member 30 at first end 32. Bracket member 20 is also attached to board member 30 at second end 34 opposite first end 32. Board member 30 is attached to bracket member 10 at first end 32 with fastening means (not shown) through attachment holes 18. Board member 30 is similarly attached to bracket member 20 at second end 34 with fastening means (not shown) through attachment holes 28. Board member 30 can be any dimension suitable for the application at hand. In a preferred embodiment, a nominal one inch by nominal six inch piece of fire rated plywood can be used. A width of approximately 15 inches is suitable to engage bracket member 10 and bracket member 20 and produce an assembled system suitable for engaging structural members spaced 16 inches apart. A board member 30 can be utilized with a length of approximately 23 inches that when assembled will yield a system suitable for engaging structural members spaced 24 inches apart.

FIG. 3 presents a view of the device of the invention attached to structural members. Structural member 50 and structural member 60 represent studs used in building construction. Typical studs are made of wood in home construction and metal in commercial building construction. Various other building materials including composite or plastic materials can also be used within the scope of the present invention. One of the advantages of the present invention is that assembled sets of brackets 10, 20 attached to a board member 30 can be brought to a construction site. The assembled sets can be attached to structural members 50,60 in a relatively short period of time. The invention relies on the standard distance between structural members to provide securing holes 16, 26 that are spaced at the same standard distance and attach to structural members 50, 60 that are spaced 16 inches apart or spaced 24 inches apart or spaced at another anticipated, consistent distance. The device of the invention can be attached to structural members with appropriate hardware including, but not limited to nails, wood screws, self tapping screws, and other fasteners known in the art.

In a preferred embodiment a bracket spans half of a stud thickness so that a series of board members can be attached end to end within an application site and each successive board member will span adjacent structural members.

The many features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the detailed specification and, thus, it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such features and advantages of the invention that fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation illustrated and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention. 

1. A wall blocking system comprising: a first bracket member attached to a board member at a first end; a second bracket member attached to said board member at a second end;
 2. A wall blocking system as in claim 1 wherein: Said first bracket member is secured to a first structural member and said second bracket member is secured to a second structural member.
 3. A wall blocking system as in claim 2 wherein: Said structural member is comprised of wood.
 4. A wall blocking system as in claim 3 wherein: Said structural member cross section is approximately two inches by four inches.
 5. A wall blocking system as in claim 2 wherein: Said structural member is comprised of metal.
 6. A wall blocking system as in claim 2 wherein: Said first bracket member is secured to said first structural member with at least one fastener passing through at least one securing hole in said first bracket; and Said second bracket member is secured to said second structural member with at least one fastener passing through at least one securing hole in said second bracket.
 7. A wall blocking system as in claim 1 wherein: Said first bracket member is attached to said board member with at least one fastener passing through at least one attachment hole in said first bracket; and Said second bracket member is attached to said board member with at least one fastener passing through at least one attachment hole in said second bracket. 